The physician and academic who reshaped public health research toward accountability, Howard Hiatt, MD, died March 9 at 98 years old, The New York Times reported.
Dr. Hiatt served as the dean of Harvard School of Public Health from 1972 to 1984, during which he transformed the study of public health from infectious diseases and biological factors to the economic, political and social causes of poor health, according to the Times.
His seven-decade career included working with future Nobel Prize winners on the discovery of mRNA, urging President Ronald Reagan to end the nuclear arms buildup, and advocating for equitable healthcare.
Dr. Hiatt held numerous leadership positions at hospitals, including chief physician at Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and founder of the Division of Global Health Equity at Boston-based Brigham and Women's Hospital. That program led to the creation of Partners in Health, a nonprofit that provides healthcare to poor communities around the world.
His father immigrated from Lithuania by himself at 15, and Dr. Hiatt's family grew up in Worcester, Mass., where his father ran a small shoe company.
Learn more about Dr. Hiatt's life and career here.